We took the working dogs to Dog School again yesterday, it is really struggling dog handlers school but we pretend otherwise. It has made a big difference to how well I am working with my kelpie, she has become the only trained dog since Martin's dog Meg died a couple of months ago. We are really feeling the gap with of not having two trained dogs so we need to get the two young dogs working and making a contribution to the sheep work. With the helpful advice from the dog trainer we are hoping to make all the dogs much better at their job with less frustration on all sides.
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This year I have been determined to grow a productive vegetable garden, to get really serious about making the most of the warmer months. Martin put in raised beds and we filled them with soil and muck from the sheep and rabbit cages ("see how useful rabbits are"). We planted our crops and have been harvesting salad greens, silver beet, chard and chinese greens as well as rhubarb. Every morning while the goats were being milked I would potter around pulling weeds and splashing water about, in what may have been a prideful manner. Then this morning freezing temps and frost - now the potatoes are looking sad, the outside tomatoes are goners and it all looks a bit sad. Lets hope there is a couple of months of proper summer to give the home gardener a chance.
I photographed this climber by the side of the road. Very pretty, but have no idea what it is. Is it a native or introduced plant?
The "Classing" of the young sheep went very well. We had more rams of Stud quality than ever before. Exciting to see our genetic choices beginning to pay off. I also think we have improved our worm management, which protects the sheep from experiencing too many preventable setbacks. We are hoping that this years lambs will be even better.
The inspection and classing system of the Dorper Sheep purpose is to maintain the standard of the breed. Because the Dorper was developed from two breeds of sheep, the Dorset Horn and the Native African Persian sheep it is important that the breed does not drift too far back towards one or the other and lose the carefully selected qualities of both. One of the Inspectors says we must keep to the Golden Highway, the middle ground without extremes. |